Rep. Don Wells says Texas County residents who receive a letter from the State Tax Commission as part of an effort to gauge property values can ignore it.
Texas County earlier approved participation in the state’s “sales letter” program as part of a broad settlement related to property values in the county. The tax commission had issued a rare order to raise valuations after it claimed they were on the books too low. Ultimately, a compromise was reached, and the state released funds withheld over a nine-month period by the State Tax Commission to the assessor’s office. The state picks up half the cost of maintaining tax records.
Under the letter program, the county provides addresses of new property owners to the state, which in turn sends out the letters to obtain sales trends.
“Missouri is not a certificate of value state, meaning you do not have to divulge the purchase price of your home or real estate to anyone,” said Wells, a Cabool Republican. “I urge you to protect your rights to privacy.”
Wells adds the request appears on an official-looking letterhead from the state, which may make property owners think the information is mandated.
“The commission conducts a study every two years to determine the relationship between assessed value and current market value of residential and commercial real property. In order to carry out its statutory duties, the State Tax Commission is requesting information from real estate owners who have recently bought or sold property. The sales information we gather from this request will be used for in-house statistical studies,” reads the letter that includes a postage paid envelope.
The letter from Robert Epperson, manager of technical assistance section, and Shawn Ordway, manager of the ratio study section, adds, “The information you supply will help ensure that property assessments are fair and equitable.”